Naruto: Path of Shinobi
by Jalen Kun
Summary: It's been over 15 years since the Fourth Great Ninja War. Kabuto's dead, Sasuke and Obito escaped, and Naruto is now Hokage. Suddenly, Kumogakure and Iwagakure wages war against Konoha! What will the world come to with new Akatsuki members... And will Konoha finally come to it's end! We'll just have to give Shikamaru some Genin and see... ShikaTem!
1. Chapter 1

****There Will Be Cursing In This Story. If You Are Not A Fan Of "Bad Words" Then Please Find Another Story To Read. Thank You~!**

**Naruto: Path of Shinobi **

Prologue

"Hokage-sama," a spiky, black haired man approached the Hokage's table, a frown apparent on his face. This man is Umino Iruka. "Can I have a word with you? There's something troubling me."

Yes, he was very troubled. Anyone that knew the Chunin knew that he usually had a smile on his face, so anyone could figure out something was wrong just by looking at him.

"Troubled?" the spiky, blond haired Hokage tilted his head. This man is Uzumaki Naruto, the 6th Hokage of Konohagakure. He's still settling in to the new role; he was only appointed a year ago when Tsunade... Retired. "What's troubling you?"

"Well... I'm sort of apprehensive about the Genin Selection," Iruka explained, sheepishly scratching the back of his head. Sure, he knew the action was kind of rude to be doing in front of the most powerful Ninja in the village, but the thought that Naruto used to be his student still couldn't get out of his head. He still gave the man respect, but he still felt awkward about Naruto being Hokage. "Do you really think we should send Genin out during... You know..?"

"No," Naruto answered truthfully, making Iruka sigh in relief. All that worrying about the Hokage's reaction was for nothing, huh. "Although, we need to think strategically about this. If we postpone the Genin Selection just because of what's happening in the world, our village will be weakened even more than it is."

"But, Hokage-sama," Iruka raised his voice, but brought it down when he remembered where he was. "Sending 12 year olds out during this time is just plain _stupid_. They are just kids, can't we wait until they at least turn 14?"

"No," he replied, turning in his chair to look out the window. "I told you already, I feel the same way, but we **can't**, Iruka. And if you still feel a little unsure about this, I'll have you know that really experienced Jonin will be taking care of them. Besides," he yawned turning back around to look at Iruka, who was getting a little annoyed. "I'm sure you wouldn't pass them if they weren't qualified to be Ninja." Naruto gave a toothy grin, but Iruka caught the slight hint of hostility in Naruto's voice. He could only nod, before turning around.

"Please excuse me, Hokage-sama," Iruka opened the door and left, making sure to not slam the door behind him. All that worrying and contemplating what to do was all for naught. He knew he couldn't persuade Naruto; he was too stubborn. Naruto would be sending kids to their death... Maybe Iruka could fail everyone... No, that wouldn't work. He caught what Naruto meant when he said he wouldn't pass them if they weren't qualified. He knew Iruka would try something like that... Naruto was at least getting smarter.

_But_, Iruka thought, _he's becoming less compassionate... That's what I'm worried about._

_~In The Hokage's Office~_

Naruto ran a hand through his messy blond hair, practically slamming his face on the desk. Being Hokage was not what he expected. All the paperwork, loss of sleep, and now the inevitable Genin Selection. He wanted to be a Hokage that everyone could respect, look up to, and go to him when they needed help. But, it was obvious people were still grieving over the 5th.

Naruto could tell, because _he _was still grieving over the 5th. When Kumogakure sent an assassin to, well, assassinate her... No one could have predicted the assassination would have been a success. It took all the willpower Naruto had to stop himself from destroying Kumo himself, but he knew not even **he** could do that. The jinchuuriki of Konohagakure, and he was Hokage.

It was all for show, though. If anyone knew that the Hokage of Konoha got killed, it would just be bad news. Kumo would definitely attack, there was even news Iwagakure was joining against Konoha. Kirigakure was undecided, while Sunagakure would always be loyal with Konohagakure.

So, Naruto had to be made Hokage immediately. When news that the kyuubi jinchuuriki was Hokage, that stopped Kumo for a while. Although, war is still going on...

Naruto still doesn't know what happened... He doesn't know why Kumo just wanted to randomly start a war. I guess it was for power and land, and Iwa just joined the side they thought would win. He just hoped Kiri wouldn't go against Konoha as well... If that happened...

It wasn't helping that Sasuke still wanted to destroy Konoha... No one has seen or heard about him for about 15 years! But he would deal with that later. Right now, it's about what to do with the Academy Students.

He couldn't possibly just stop them from being Ninja just because of a war; that was stupid. But, he had to do something... Or he would be sending kids to their death...

"Naruto," a stern, but familiar voice pulled him out of his thoughts. It was unnerving that the person didn't call him Hokage-sama, but he supposed this _one_ person didn't have to.

It was Haruno Sakura standing in front of him, a stack of papers in her hands. Since Tsunade died, Shizune was too emotionally distraught to be of any help, so he had Sakura become his assistant. It worked out well, too, since they knew each other for a long time, and Sakura working as his aide did sound pretty hot to Naruto.

Sakura narrowed her eyes at Naruto when she saw the perverted smirk on his face and cleared her throat. "Naruto, your stack of paperwork has arrived," she said, but she was thinking, _I don't know what he's thinking about, but I'm about two seconds from bending his arm in five different ways! Damn it! _

She hid her thoughts behind a professional smile, though, practically dumping the work on his desk.

"Oh..." the man practically sulked, turning around to look out the window again. He knew he would be up all night doing paperwork again, so he might as well just procrastinate as much as he was allowed.

"What's got you down, Naruto?" she asked, raising a brow at his depression. He was usually like this nowadays, and whenever she asked about it he would hide behind a cheery smile and say it's nothing. He really was an idiot... Holding in your emotions like that is never healthy.

But this time, Naruto didn't respond with the fake answer. He couldn't, not in this situation. "I need help, Sakura-chan... Like, really," he turned around and stared at the lady, his blue eyes seeming to lose all it's shine. "I'm really depressed about what's been happening these days-"

"We can't help that, Naruto," she replied instantly, as if she heard the same thing every day. In reality, she's been telling Ino the same thing Naruto was telling her now. She just replied with the same thing Ino has been telling her. "I know it's hard, but we need to protect our village... That's why they picked you as Hokage, because you're the stro-"

"I'm just a figurehead," Naruto shrugged, looking away. "And can you call me by Hokage-sama? It's much more respectful."

"Yes, _Hokage-sama_," she bowed, smirking. Naruto chuckled at Sakura's sarcasm, knowing he wouldn't get anything better than that. "But, even if you are a figurehead, you're the best person for the job."

"I'm sure Kakashi-sensei would have been a better choice," Naruto replied. "Or maybe even Shikamaru, at least he's smarter."

"But, they don't want the job. **You** do," Sakura crossed her arms, unable to believe she was having this conversation with Naruto. "Kakashi-sensei isn't motivated enough for the job, and it's obvious that he'll be more use in the field. And Shikamaru... Are you serious? There's no way he'd take the job even if he was the last Ninja alive."

"Is that a premonition?"

"Premonition? Big word, _Hokage-sama_," she laughed, Naruto doing the same. "Anyway, is this all, Naruto? Ino, Hinata, Tenten and I are going out tonight and I gotta get ready."

"Um, that originally wasn't what I was going to ask you about," Naruto sweat dropped, making Sakura clench her fist. Even though he was Hokage, she's sure that she can get away with breaking a nose, _at least. _

"...How are we going to test the Academy Students to become Genin?" Naruto asked after a while, finding it extremely embarrassing to talk about. Sakura didn't know why, she actually knew they would have this problem sooner or later.

"That's... It..?" she blinked, realization hitting her that Naruto was all worried over something she thought of already. "I already thought of that already, of course."

"What?!" Naruto exclaimed, standing up from his seat and almost jumping over the table. Almost. You only make that mistake once. "What do we do?! Wait... First off, how?!"

"The beautiful female Ninja, Sakura, will explain!" she did a pose - Naruto thought it was kinda hot - and took out a scroll from... Nowhere? "It was obvious this was going to happen sooner or later, so I secretly took things into my own hands. You can't just let any kid become a Ninja because of the war, right? Well..." And Sakura explained to Naruto what she thought they should do.

Naruto just gaped as the words slowly registered into his brain. It just dawned on him that that was the most logical solution. Unlike just a simple shuriken throwing test, it could actually be a real test! It was perfect!

"Sakura-chan, you're amazing!" Naruto exclaimed, contemplating whether or not he should hug the girl or not. He thought against it, because Sakura's punches have gotten pretty strong lately.

She giggled, "Thank you, _Hokage-sama_," she rolled her eyes in her mind and walked out the room, not even excusing herself. She closed the door behind her and sighed, wiping a bead of sweat from her forehead. This war was taking a toll on her as well, since she's had to kill a few enemy Ninja, too. It was hard, but she had to endure. It was simply her job.

_~Elsewhere~_

"Throw me the kunai! Throw it!" Kaneko Aki shouted, jumping up and down. His two friends, Hatake Takeshi, and Yamanaka Daiki sweat dropped at their friend's enthusiasm and idiocy.

Kaneko Aki is an 11 year old boy, most likely an Academy Student. He has messy red hair and bright blue eyes. He wears a orange jacket with a black hoodie and teal colored shorts. He has on blue sandals like mostly everyone else in the village, and there were many cuts on his arms, legs, and even face! But, the most notable feature on him is the black cat ears on his head. He's heir of the newly made Kaneko clan, rival of the Inuzuka clan for obvious reasons.

"Stupid. You can't throw a kunai at someone without them getting hurt," Hatake Takeshi said in a matter-of-fact tone.

Hatake Takeshi is also 11 years old, but he's older than Aki, and he's also an Academy Student. He has unnatural purple hair and purple eyes. Although, they're just contacts. He wears a white T-shirt and a black, unzipped jacket. He has on blue jeans and blue sandals just like Aki. As you can tell from his name, he's Hatake Kakashi's son. His mom is... Surprise, surprise... Mitarashi Anko! Which explains his purple hair.

"You're just scared! Scaredy dog, scaredy dog," Aki mocked, sticking out his tongue.

"Scaredy dog?" Yamanaka Daiki mused before face palming. "That... Doesn't make any sense. The saying is scaredy cat, not dog..." he corrected, throwing his kunai at a log.

Yamanaka Daiki is actually 12 years old, but he started the Academy the same time as his two friends, since his birthday is early. He has an unnatural hair style; the right side of his head unkempt and messy while the left side is straight. His hair color is blue, and he has the light blue eyes that everyone in his clan has. He wears a green button up shirt and blue jeans. He wears the blue sandals that mostly everyone wears and black rimmed glasses. Even though he looks the smartest of his friends, both of them are actually smarter.

"Well, you know... I hate dogs and love cats, so saying scaredy cat would be... Offensive," he explained, taking out his own kunai and throwing it at his log. They were practicing kunai throwing at the third training grounds, even though they weren't Ninja. Although, since all of them are part of a Ninja clan, they supposed they could train here without getting in trouble. "Didn't I tell you all that before?"

"Of course, because you call people scaredy dogs every day," Takeshi answered in a sarcastic tone, throwing his own kunai at the logs. "Why are we practicing throwing kunai anyway? I know this already, and shouldn't we be throwing shuriken instead?"

"I know!" Daiki agreed, pausing as he was about to throw another kunai.

"Well, _you_ might be able to throw kunai good, but Daiki and I can't!" Aki yelled, throwing another kunai.

"My throwing skills are actually pretty acceptable right now."

"Well, I guess we could throw shuriken instead," Aki ignored his blue haired friend, taking out a few shuriken in each hand.

"...Fine," the purple haired one groaned, taking out his shuriken. "...But, why don't I use you as practice?!" he smirked, throwing them at Aki. Aki, being in the Kaneko clan, sensed the shuriken coming for him and jumped on the ground to dodge them, dropping his own in the process.

He jumped back up, glaring at Takeshi, who was looking away and whistling as if he didn't do anything. "What was that for, you punk?! I'll show you, nya!" he grabbed for his fallen shuriken and threw them at Takeshi. The latter didn't even move as the shuriken just whizzed past him.

...

"Ha! I cut you!" Aki grinned, sticking his tongue out in a mocking way. Takeshi almost choked on his spit as he turned around, giving the mocking boy an incredulous look.

"You missed!" Takeshi yelled, before blinking and realizing that's the reaction his friend wanted. When you knew someone for 3 years, you get to understand their childish ways. It was sad, but his dad said everyone in the Kaneko clan was like that, but he also warned him that they get deathly serious when around an Inuzuka. Takeshi just thought they were all dumb. "You definitely missed me," he deadpanned.

"Then let's have a shuriken battle," Aki proposed, now gaining Daiki's attention.

"Shuriken battle? How do you play?" he asked, not wanting to play anything that he could get hurt in. And a shuriken battle already _sounds_ painful.

Aki grinned, picking up all his shuriken and nonchalantly throwing it at Takeshi again. This time, however, Takeshi had to sidestep to avoid the attack, almost about to glare at the cat boy. He wouldn't, though, the act was beneath him; the proud son of Hatake Kakashi, the copy Ninja.

"Exactly like that. Thanks for demonstrating, _Take-kun~_" Aki grinned wider, seeing Takeshi's scowl. That was one of his nicknames to get under his skin. He has other ones like _Hatake-sama_ or, well... Those two were really it. But, he really just calls him Takeshi when they are talking regularly.

"You'll get hurt," Daiki told him, but he just shook his head. "You know you can't even throw them like _me,_ much less Takeshi."

"How rude," Aki said, looking away. "You're just scared of my skills, nya," he added, his cat ears seeming to nod in agreement.

"Come on, Daiki," Takeshi smirked a little bit threateningly. "_We'll double up against him... Don't worry, he'll heal fast_," he whispered, making Daiki grin awkwardly. He liked the plan, but he didn't want to kill the boy. Shuriken are dangerous, you know! But, Takeshi seems a little annoyed by Aki's behavior...

The glasses wearing boy sighed. _This always happens, _he thought bitterly, arming himself with shuriken.

_~Elsewhere~_

A drop of rain fell from the sky, but it soon became a downpour. The whole base was quiet, just like the black haired man liked. The only sound that was heard could be the rain outside. It was a little soothing, and it helped him to think. It helped him to think about all the many ways to destroy Konoha.

Yes, this man is Uchiha Sasuke; apparently a worldwide villain. He scoffed at how easy it was to transform into the hachibi and manipulate the Raikage with his Sharingan. He made him start war against Konoha, and he even manipulated the Tsuchikage into joining the war as well. He hated that soon the whole world would be against Konoha, But Tobi - or should he call him Obito? - said it was all for the best. It **wasn't** for the best, however. He didn't need anyone's help to destroy Konoha.

But, it was too late, now. Kumo and Iwa have already started the battle against Konoha and Suna. Nothing major happened yet, though. Just attacking smaller villages and such, nothing _that_ major.

"After Kiri joins the war against Konoha... **That's** when the fun begins," Obito practically laughed out one time, enraging Sasuke. This whole war thing is to capture the last jinchuuriki; Naruto. He scowled at the name... Naruto. He hated the name and the person! Apparently, he's the 6th Hokage now... How foolish...

Sasuke chuckled. After he manipulates Kiri against Konoha, he'll be able to destroy that cursed place. The place that practically killed his family!

Although, it would be a little hard to manipulate the Mizukage. With that Byakugan user, they'll know she's being manipulated and they'll eventually piece the pieces together and realize all the Kage's are being manipulated. It sucked, but they would have to see what they do on their own. They couldn't manipulate them just yet...

And manipulating the Kazekage would also be bad. Of course Konoha would be suspicious that everyone is suddenly trying to go against them, even their closest ally! They would definitely suspect the Sharingan and piece the pieces together and see everyone is being manipulated and... Well, it'll be 5 villages against the newly made Akatsuki.

And it's not like he can manipulate everyone in the world, because he can't. Some people are harder than most because of their "will" or whatever. And it takes a lot of power to manipulate someone, so he'll have to rest a lot before he can do that again.

It's been 15 years since the last war against Akatsuki, and they can't afford another one. Not only do they not have enough men, but Kabuto is dead, and the rest of the world _thinks_ Obito is dead.

"Sasuke," a lady's voice brought him from his thoughts. He looked up to see Karin in her Akatsuki uniform, staring at him. He couldn't see any form of a blush on her face, and he could hear the sliver of fear in her voice. It made him feel a little guilty; she must still be shooken up about when he almost killed her.

"Sasuke," she said again, gaining his attention.

"What is it?" he asked her.

"Some Ninja is nearing our base, so we need you to take care of him," she explained, adjusting her glasses.

"Why can't someone else do it?" Sasuke asked, turning his head to look away from her.

"I don't trust any of those so-called S rank killers to do it without them letting the guy get away," she answered like it was obvious. It wasn't, not to Sasuke at least. The new Akatsuki members were supposed to be the most powerful Ninja in the world, that's what Obito said, at least. In reality, they're just super strong missing nin, like Sasuke.

"What about Suigetsu and Jugo?" he asked, really not wanting to go. It was raining out there, and he wasn't in the mood to kill anyone. Not now...

"I don't expect them to get the job done, either," she was tapping her foot now, as if they were wasting time by talking. "If you don't hurry up, they'll see the base and all of the plans would be ruined."

"Fine," he groaned, getting up. "I'm still sure someone could have done it besides me," he pushed past her, walking out the door. Now that he was in a bad mood, he felt like killing. Ironic, isn't it? He's in a bad mood because he didn't feel like killing and now that he's in a bad mood he wants to kill... How ironic.

It didn't matter, though. Hopefully this nosy Ninja was a Konoha Ninja.. At least then he'd feel a little satisfied.

_~Back In Konoha~_

Aki was on the ground, muttering curses, plenty of cuts all over his body. Well, he already had cuts on his body, but these were fresh. Shuriken wounds...

Takeshi was sneering at the fallen boy, now satisfied that he could teach the kid a lesson. They were still friends, and they would always be friends, but sometimes things like this happens.

"**Don't fuck with me, nya!**" Aki yelled, ignoring the pain all over his body and jumping up. He was bleeding in various places, but it didn't really matter to him. He would be bleeding when he got home anyway... "You do know I have to go home and get mauled by my family's cats, right? It hurts like Hell when you get cut on an already fresh wound!"

"I'm sorry, Aki! Takeshi told me to join him and..." Daiki trailed off, realizing that wasn't really an excuse. "...You were getting annoying," he deadpanned after a while, not really caring about Aki anymore.

Aki fumed, his face turning red. "You two will pay, you know that, right?" He tried to smirk to add to his statement, but it just looked like an awkward smile.

"Why are you smiling? Are you a masochist?" Daiki questioned. "It's actually pretty creepy... Stop it," he demanded, unconsciously stepping back.

"So now you know the true terror that is Kaneko Aki," he was able to properly smirk this time, the pain numbing away. You get used to cuts when you get them all the time. And it doesn't help that the cats sometimes add chakra to their claws... Especially when you accidentally step on their tails. "I'll give you a few seconds to run, I guess I can give you that much mercy."

"Shuddup," Takeshi yawned, realizing it's pretty late. Time goes by when you're practically killing one of your best friends. He would never admit to calling him a best friend, though. Never. "We need to get back home, it's getting late," he told them, walking away from the two boys. Suddenly, he felt a stinging cut on his back!

"Ow!" He jumped, turning around. Fearing the worst, he jumped on to ground, shielding his head. A few seconds later he could hear snickering, which turned into flat out laughter when he opened his eyes. Daiki and Aki were cracking up, but he could see Aki's extended finger nails dripping with a little blood. Takeshi's blood.

"You damn..!" Takeshi growled, a million words coming into his mind to call the boy. "Troglodyte!"

Laughter was ceased...

...

"Troglodyte?! What?! Hahahaha!" Aki started laughing again, now rolling on the ground. "Man, I'm so happy I learned how to do this... Even if I can only do it with one hand," he wiped away a tear, trying to stand up. He wiped away the blood from his nails and they retracted back into his hands. Just like a cat...

"I'll kill you!" Takeshi yelled, taking out plenty of shuriken and throwing them at the boy. Aki dodged them all, running around and laughing like a maniac.

"I'm sorry, but he promised not to do it to me if I didn't warn you," Daiki explained to the enraged boy as if it was the most logical thing. It **wasn't**! Not to Takeshi, of course. But, he decided not to throw shuriken at Daiki just because he didn't physically touch him.

...

After that whole ordeal - Aki tripped and the rest is history - they started walking home, enjoying the peaceful wind. Aki complained about all the cuts on him, Daiki resisted laughter, and Takeshi just had a smug grin on his face, accomplished. Sometimes, they all wondered why they were even friends. Daiki was a Yamanaka, meaning he should be playing and training with Nara's and Akimichi's, although their wasn't any his age. Takeshi was the proud son of Hatake Kakashi and Mitarashi Anko, both of them Konoha Jonin. It was obvious he should be a child prodigy or something, not playing and messing around. He should be Genin by now, well, that's what they expected of him. And Aki is heir of the newest Ninja clan in Konoha. And they're pretty powerful, rivaling the Inuzuka clan and being a huge help in the war. But, they're still pretty new, meaning his two friends are a little too "high maintenance" for him.

But, despite all of that, they're the best of friends. It's pretty weird, and they all realised that, too. Well, more or less.

_It is cool to be best friends with a Hatake, _Daiki thought gleefully.

_Maybe I should get extra lessons from my dad... Just so I can beat Aki's ass easier, _Takeshi thought, smirking.

_Hn. They should be honored to be in my presence; The Heir of the Kaneko Clan, Kaneko Aki! _Aki thought, grinning.

They all glanced at each other, before turning away, different expressions on each of their faces. Yep... The best of friends...

_**Author's Notes:**_

_**Well, this is the prologue to my newest story, Naruto: Path of Shinobi. I hope you all liked it. Also, I hope you all understand the story so far. Let me explain... **_

_**It's been 15 years since the 4th great Ninja war. Kabuto is dead, and Obito and Sasuke escaped. Itachi didn't meet Sasuke, and Sasuke didn't join Naruto and Sakura in the battle against Madara or Obito or whatever. Sasuke still wants to destroy Konoha, and Obito still wants to capture the last jinchuuriki; Naruto. Killer Bee has already been captured 15 years ago during the war, so he's dead. Also, Neji isn't dead. And I don't know what happens to Anko, but she's alive. If you have any other questions about anything, just review or message or whatever you want to do and ask me.**_

_**Also, if you don't like the story, don't read. I appreciate constructive criticism, but things like "THIS STORY SUCKS! BLAH! CHICKEN NUGGETS!" won't be appreciated, and I'll ignore it. And remove the review. Also, there will be death in this story, considering there's a war going on, but don't worry... It won't be too descriptive (I suck anyway...). Ahem... And there will be multiple pairings in this story, but the main pairing is Shikamaru and Temari. I know, this story is pretty overdone, but... Whatever. I don't care. :/**_

_**Oh, and I made the Kaneko clan from my own imagination, so if there's a story with the exact same clan name and they are pretty much the same thing... Please inform me. I would REALLY like to see who read my mind and/or stole it from me. Thank you for actually reading this super long author's note... And if you have anymore questions please tell me! **_

_**Bye nii~!**_


	2. Chapter 2

**Naruto: Path of Shinobi **

Chapter 1: The Genin Selection Exam

_It's been one year since then, _Hatake Takeshi thought, _And today is the Genin Selection Exam, meaning that practice is going to finally pay off. These exams are obviously going to be something simple, probably target throwing or maybe even a simple Clone Jutsu. _The boy smirked, now twelve years old, and now about to take the exam to become a Ninja.

All the Genin hopefuls were sitting down in the Academy room. They were having mindless chatter, some talking about the exams and some even going as far as talking about the Genin teams. Takeshi chuckled, starting to think about what his future team would be.

The thought that Daiki and Aki wouldn't be on his team made him frown, but he put it in the back of his mind immediately, thinking about other things. He found himself smiling when he remembered his dad trying to make him wear a mask that covered most of his face. He easily rejected that, because who would like someone wearing a mask? It was ridiculous.

"Takeshi!" Aki called when he walked in the room. As usual, the boy had plenty of healing cuts on him, and he just had to make a scene. A scene that made everyone in the class stop talking and stare at him. Takeshi just put his head down, muttering curses.

"Hey, Takeshi," Aki said, ignoring the stares and sitting down beside the boy. Daiki was right behind him, also sitting down. "Today's the day Daiki and I will have to leave you here in the Academy, so let's at least have a little chat before we never meet again, okay?"

Takeshi snorted, putting his head up to lazily to look at his friend. He expected this behavior, after all. "I'm better than you at everything, so if I don't pass then you definitely won't," he replied, smirking at Aki's threatening smile. They just stared at each other before they both just turned away.

Daiki smiled at his friend's behavior. He doesn't know what happened, but through the year it seemed like they had became friendly rivals. It didn't take long for the class to start getting used to their antics, so they were usually ignored, but Daiki couldn't help but feel happy around them.

Aki and Takeshi were both 12 now, while Daiki was 13. Takeshi was the shortest - much to the boy's annoyance - and Aki and Daiki were the same height, not much taller than the other boy, though. Their outfits hadn't changed at all, which was to be expected since it's only been a year.

"What do you think the exam's going to be about?" Daiki asked, deciding to start a conversation. His two friends glanced at him, but Takeshi turned away, uninterested.

"Probably Transformation Jutsu," Aki replied, his familiar toothy grin turned on. "That's why I've been perfecting this..!" He did the necessary hand seals for the Transformation Jutsu and yelled, "**Transformation Jutsu: Kaneko Style!**"

He then exploded in a puff of smoke, alarming most of the classmates. The smart ones just ignored the boy, not really caring. After the smoke cleared away, you could see an orange cat with a messy red patch on the top of his head. After a few seconds, the cat meowed, then started to talk.

"This is it, nya~" The cat - Or Aki? - yawned, rolling on the table. "Sorry, I get really tired in this form... And thirsty, nya," he added, closing his eyes.

"Do you want some milk?" Takeshi asked, smirking.

"Milk?" Aki asked, before giving a disapproving look. "That's an offensive stereotype. Even though I love milk, I'd rather much prefer some tea, nya," he explained, before grinning and jumping on Takeshi's head.

"A-Ah! Get off!" Takeshi yelled, standing up and trying to grab the cat off of him. Aki just took out his claws, burying them in the other boy's hair so he couldn't get pulled off.

"Wow," Daiki blinked, thinking it was pretty cool. Takeshi didn't, he was too busy trying desperately to pull the damn _thing _off of him! Aki just yawned, realizing Takeshi was getting tired of struggling.

"I think I'm gonna be staying in this form for a while, nya," Aki smirked. "It's pretty... Comfortable, nya," he added, making himself comfortable on the other boy's head. Takeshi sat down and slumped in his seat, sighing in displeasure and defeat. The other kids looked at the trio strangely - mostly Aki and Takeshi - before holding in laughter. They knew better than to laugh at Takeshi; the son of Hatake Kakashi!

Daiki wasn't holding in laughter, though. He was flat out laughing, banging his fist on the table. This slightly encouraged the other kids to chuckle, but one look from Takeshi shut them up. For good.

The purple haired boy sighed. _This is giving people the wrong image... And I care how I look around people. This idiot might not, but __**I **__do! _

"Hey, _Take-kun_," Aki started. "Maybe you should use some shampoo more... Your hair stinks, nya," he said bluntly, making the whole class erupt in laughter.

"Why you..!" A million words ran through the boy's head as he stood up with a kunai, dangerously pointing it at the cat. "Changeling! Get off of me or I'll skewer you, damn it!"

Laughter was ceased...

...

"Changeling?! What?! Nyahahaha!" Aki laughed, making the class laugh again. Daiki was rolling on the floor at this point, his glasses in danger of falling off his face.

Takeshi had a choice to make. Kill Aki and revive his reputation, or put up with this abuse until class ends so he could woop his ass personally. Hm... Does blood stain hair? _Apparently_, it needed washing anyway... But, he could embarrass the boy later in front of everyone without killing him... He _could_ use a few Jutsu his dad taught him... And he doubted Aki had any useful Jutsu under that cat boy sleeve of his.

...

_Nah, I'll just kill him now, _he thought, poking the other boy with the kunai. Aki "eeeped" when he felt the kunai dig a little deeper into his cheek, but before Takeshi could go deeper and kill the kid, a puff of smoke erupted in the front of the room. The whole class stopped laughing, and everything was dangerously quiet when the smoke cleared to reveal Iruka and about 10 Chunin behind him. There was also a Jonin standing right beside Iruka, who Takeshi and Daiki recognized as Morino Ibiki.

Takeshi knew the Jonin because he came over his house looking for his mom and dad. His dad didn't like him much and called him a sadist. He wouldn't tell him why, though.

Daiki knew the man because being in the Yamanaka clan, he's going to have to be good at interrogation and probably torture, so he got a little mini lesson on what that is. Even though he wasn't a Ninja, yet... Was this going to be an interrogation exam?

"Hatake-san, sit down," Iruka demanded in a stern voice. "And you know unless you're an Inuzuka or a Kaneko you aren't allowed to bring pets."

"_This_," he pointed to Aki with the kunai, who faked sleep. "is not my pet. This is a monstrosity."

Iruka sighed, kind of realizing what he was talking about. "Is that... Kaneko-san?" He asked, losing patience. He didn't give either boy or cat time to answer. "If it is you, Kaneko-san, undo the transformation and sit down," he ordered, now impatiently tapping his foot on the floor. He didn't want Ibiki to get irritated, and he knew some of the Chunin behind him could get a little... _Belligerent_.

"Nyaa~ I don't wanna," Aki whined, scratching Takeshi's head a little, making the boy under him wince. "You wouldn't understand, Iruka-sensei, since you aren't from my clan, but this is very comfortable, nya."

Iruka sighed knowingly. "I see, but can you at least get off of Hatake-san, _he's_ the one uncomfortable about this," he paused, and then added, "Or... Are you?"

"**Yes**," the boy furiously nodded, almost making Aki fall off. "Please get him off or I'm gonna **gut** him," he said threateningly, the kunai still a little too close for comfort to Aki.

"Okay," Iruka nodded. "Kaneko-san, get off of him, now!" He practically yelled, sensing the killing intent behind him. He didn't want the boy to get hurt, no matter how annoying or disturbing he could be, so he needed to show his authority.

Everyone flinched at Iruka's tone, because they knew that tone meant he was serious. Very serious. Aki jumped off Takeshi's head and undid the transformation, sitting down right in between Daiki and Takeshi. His cat ears moved a little, and a cat grin nervously settled on his face.

"Now that _that_ is settled, I'll get started," Ibiki boomed, making the whole class flinch again. Such innocent kids. "My name is Morino Ibiki, and I'm the examiner of the Genin Selection Exam."

Iruka hid back a smirk, feeling happy that Ibiki was already starting his interrogation skills; intimidation. He was very happy when Naruto told him what the exam would be, because even regular Genin had trouble with this! There's no way Academy Students could pass this, no matter what! He would make sure they wouldn't get killed in combat, he promised that.

"I'm not even going to give you all assigned seats, because there's a 95% chance that you'll **fail** this test," he announced, his eyes freezing anyone who he looks at. "The tests will be passed out now. Don't get out of your seat and don't talk, or you immediately **fail**. Pigs who defy me will **fail**."

A random student raised their hand, which Ibiki acknowledged with a nod. "What's this exam about? Isn't the Genin Selection Exam usually things like performing the Clone Jutsu, or throwing shuriken on a dart board? What are we about to do?" The student asked, shaking under Ibiki's gaze.

"This year, the Genin Selection will be a written test," Ibiki answered. The class inwardly groaned, making sure not to talk otherwise they fail.

Once all the papers were passed out and all the Chunin took a seat in the sides of three class, each equipped with a clipboard, Ibiki began the speech. "This first exam has a few important rules. I will not except any questions, so listen carefully," he grabbed some chalk and started scribbling words down on the big chalk board that was rarely used.

"The first rule is you are all given ten points at the start. This written exam consists of ten questions and each is worth one point. This test is a deduction based test. If you get one problem wrong, you will get one point deducted. If you get three problems wrong, your points will deduce to seven," after he said that, he finished writing on the board and looked back at the slightly confused class. They all began to read, in their minds, of course.

**Points You Have - 10 **

**Example 1. All problems correct - Your point total remains at 10. **

**Example 2. Three problems incorrect - Your point total has been reduced to 7.**

"Second rule: If an examiner determines that you cheated or did something similar during the test... Each action will cause you to lose two points. In other words, there will be people who will be forced to leave this place without their tests being graded. Those who try to cheat without thinking carefully will only be hurting themselves," he announced, frowning when he didn't even see any of the kids flinch. He doubted any of the kids would pass, but he couldn't grade them on the information gathering part... They would all definitely fail then. He still had a couple of Chunin transform into kids and take the test as well, just in case a smart kid got what he was saying... Why did the Hokage say this was the Genin test? It was ridiculous...

Iruka didn't think so, though. It was perfect. And he could stay to see the kids lose their cool and eventually quit, it was just what he wanted. Sure, that did sound a bit sadistic, but he didn't want these kids dying as soon as they became Ninja. Sure, Ninja die for their country, and Ninja of any age is expected to do that, but he just couldn't bring himself to pass any of them. He was too kindhearted, too _nice_.

"You are all trying to become Genin. If you are Ninja material, then **act** like it," he was nearing the final and he couldn't help but sigh in relief at how he hadn't been interru-

"This is stupid! Why do we have to take some kind of te-"

In the blink of an eye, a Chunin had him in the choke hold before the rude student could even finish his sentence. "Don't make a scene, okay? Little cute Academy Student," the older man - or boy, he didn't look so old - tightened his hold, making the kid gasp for breath.

"You fail," Ibiki sighed. He just _knew_ he would have to make an example out of someone... "I said to not talk, therefore you defyed me. _Pigs who defy me will fail,_" he repeated, almost feeling sorry for the boy. He understood why Iruka felt how he felt, but making it near to impossible for the kids to pass... That wasn't smart. Not to Ibiki, anyway, but he had orders to be ruthless.

"Please leave, Toshiro-san," Iruka ordered, trying hard not to feel the guilt when looking at the boy's face. He wasn't even a clan kid, just a civilian kid wanting to be a Ninja. _Those_ were the ones that were going to have it the hardest.

Toshiro was escorted out the classroom, on the verge of tears. The class was silent as they watched, and the door closed with an eery slam, making the kids shudder. They now understood how very serious this was... Well, most of them... The super smart ones were just staring in a bored-like manner, wishing for the test to begin already so they could turn the paper over.

"The last problem will be given 45 minutes after the test begins. You have an hour for the exam," He said, but was thinking, _An hour of boredom... For me, at least... _"**Begin!**"

_~At Ichiraku Ramen~_

"Why did you want to talk to me, Sakura-chan?" The blond Hokage asked, slurping up noodles after noodles.

"We have a slight problem, Naruto," the pink haired aide said, slowly eating her noodles. In her younger days, she would never be willing to go to Ichiraku Ramen unless she was very hungry. She _was _on her diet, duh. "There's a rumor Kumo Ninja have been spotted in Fire Country, creating havoc whenever they can," she told the man, sipping more noodles in her mouth. "Do you think we should call our allies; Suna? We haven't been in touch with them for a while," she then paused, a knowing look on her face. "Well, _you_ haven't."

"You have?" Naruto asked, now on his second bowl.

"You know who has," she replied, smirking. Naruto grinned, nodding his head when he realized who she was talking about. "Anyway, I'm saying we might need a bit of help from them. They _are_ our allies, you know."

"And you want to send a carrier pigeon, or something?" Naruto asked, but realized how stupid that sounded. "Oh..."

"The Kumo Ninja are shooting down our birds, Naruto! So, I'm saying we need to send a squad to send a message to Suna. Maybe even delete the enemies on the way!"

"It could be a trap," Naruto said, blankly looking at his noodles. "I just realized talking about this kind of stuff and eating isn't a good mix..."

"Naruto," she sighed, a tiny smile on her face because of Naruto's... _Indifference_. "They wouldn't send powerful Ninja just to shoot down some birds. Not Jonin, at least. I think we should send a Genin squad to Suna. It would be good experience, and we could send you-know-who with them. He could be their Sensei!" She smiled. "And I'm sure he would love to go," she added.

"...So, you're telling me, the slight chance that three or more Academy Students pass the exam today, _he_ will be their Sensei, and the team will go out immediately? Not mentioning I'm pretty sure he wouldn't want to be a Sensei," Naruto tilted his head. "But, the slight chance a group of three passes, they will get their Jounin Sensei the next day and leave for Suna the day after that? And then, if it is a trap, they all die and _he_ probably escapes? That's..."

"Stupid? I know," she sighed. "But, if it is a trap, we wouldn't want to send super powerful Ninja just for them to get killed. Our Ninja are becoming scarce, you know... This is the best way," she said, realizing this could be a suicide mission.

"We could send another Genin team. One that already has experience, you know," he tried, but she shook her head.

"The exam this year is hard," she mused, ignoring Naruto. "If a group of three passes, then I'm pretty sure they're ready."

"But, I still don't think he'd want a Genin team," he used his last option, but Sakura just gave him a sideways glance.

"You're Hokage. **Make** him."

~Back At The Academy~

Takeshi, never in his life, has ever failed a test. Never. But, today might -No, _will_ be different. He looked at the first problem; he couldn't get it. He looked at the second one; couldn't get it. He went down the whole paper and couldn't get **any** of them.

_This is impossible, _He thought, hiding his distressed emotions behind a mask. A mask that if you saw, you would think he knew every problem. But he didn't even know **one**. _There's no way anyone else knows these problems... Maybe... Maybe it's a trick... _He felt a little better after thinking that and looked at Aki in his peripheral vision.

The boy looked a mess; his cat ears sagging and the mischievous glint that always seems to be in his eyes gone. There was a frown on his face, and sweat was sliding down the side of it. It looked like he was either _really_ concentrating, or just _really_ disquieted. Looking at the others boy paper for a split second - less he get caught - he could tell it was the latter.

_This... Is bad, _Aki mumbled in his mind. _I'm very smart, smarter than Takeshi if I do say so myself. But, math is my only weakness... And, _he sighed, getting sideways glances from Daiki and Takeshi. _This test is full of them... What am I going to do..? I don't have a single question answered... _

He glanced at Daiki and immediately shook his head, realizing he would only be hurting himself. The examiner told him that he'll lose two points if he even does something that **looks** like he's cheating... And he doubted he would get any _right_ answers from Daiki. To Aki, Daiki was an idiot. He had common sense, but not much book smart.

He then thought about stealing answers from Takeshi, but he knew the other boy was a little pissed at him and would rat him out the second he so much as turned his head.

_Then again, if __**I**__ can't get any problems right, I doubt anyone can, _Aki thought, resisting the urge to slam his head on the table and sigh in defeat. He wouldn't do that; too proudful. Even though most of the kids that he could see was either banging their head on the table and/or pushing back tears... Although, that's probably what they want! They want to see him get all depressed and lose his cool! Then, when he's on the verge of tears...

_"Okay, I'm going to announce the person that lost his cool and nearly cried over a test... Kaneko Aki! He's the crybaby, the scaredy cat of the class!" Iruka laughed, making all the other kids laugh. Takeshi nudged Aki's shoulder, which earned the other boy a few cuts on his arm. Daiki was laughing like crazy, going so far as to drop his glasses and accidentally step on them._

_"Scaredy cat! Scaredy cat! Scaredy cat! Scaredy cat!" The class sung, all getting up and leaving with their new forehead protectors. Aki was left behind, getting chastised by Iruka... _

Aki raged, a fire seeming to illuminate within him and burn though his eyes. Instead of the mischievous glint, there was a fiery glare at nothing in particular. He wouldn't lose to this test! He would at the least act like he had every problem right!

_I won't lose, NYA, _He yelled inwardly, resisting the urge to stand up and fist pump.

Daiki just stared at his friend from the corner of his eye, a little freaked out by how his whole mood seemed to just change! The air around them just, like, shifted! It was inspirational, to say the least, but dumb. He doubted Aki knew the meaning of the test, and he thought that Takeshi might have an idea, but it didn't matter. **He** knew the real meaning of the test. It all came together when...

_"Second rule: If an examiner determines that you cheated or did something similar during the test... Each action will cause you to lose two points. In other words, there will be people who will be forced to leave this place without their tests being graded. Those who try to cheat without thinking carefully will only be hurting themselves."_

_Daiki tilted his head when he heard that, but not enough for people to notice. Why would you lose two points if you cheat? Usually, when you cheat, you fail... So something was definitely up with this. _

_"You are all trying to become Genin. If you are Ninja material, then __**act**__ like it."_

_Daiki didn't know a lot of book smarts, but he could tell when something was being hinted. And that just oozed with hinting something. But, what? The only thing that come come to his mind was you were supposed to cheat, but that didn't make sense. Maybe cheat without being caught? But, that still didn't make much sense..._

But, when the test was turned over and he saw the type of questions, his assumption didn't seem so off anymore. There was just one more thing that was off, though... Who would he cheat off of? It didn't take long to realize no one was writing at all, no one he _knew_, at least. He didn't know if anyone else noticed, but he could tell that there was a few extra students here... A few extra students that he did not know or ever seen before, and they were the only ones writing. And they were writing without hesitation, like they weren't even reading the questions!

He tilted his head once more, before everything seemed to come together... He knew, or at the least thought he knew, what this test was about.

"Aki," Daiki whispered, cupping his hand with his mouth as to not look like he was talking. In retrospect, it just made him look all the more suspicious. "Aki, if you hear me, wiggle your... Uh... Cat ears. But don't look at me," he whispered, leaning in as if he was deeply concentrating on the test, but he was just trying to make Aki hear him better.

Aki stared at Daiki from the corner of his eye and did as he said, waggling his ears. Daiki didn't need to whisper so loud, well... Aki was basically part cat, and he could hear dangerously well. Daiki could be muttering to himself and he could hear. But, he wouldn't say that... He would just listen to what the other boy wanted.

"Good, now do you see the person sitting in front of us constantly writing. He's writing without hesitation, meaning he must know the answers," Daiki whispered, darting his eyes to look at the examiners at the sides of the classroom. They were hardly looking up from their clipboard, writing down things. It was... Weird, to say the least.

Aki looked away from Daiki to look at the boy sitting in front of him, furiously writing. That surprised the boy, but he didn't show it, he just nodded.

"Can't you, uh, can you boost your vision or something and look at his answers?" Daiki asked, sounding a bit desperate. He had to be, if this didn't work then they all failed...

_Two boys, _Ibiki thought, scanning over the classroom. _No, one boy talking to another. The other hasn't responded yet... _Ibiki smirked when he saw the boy's talking, but frowned when he sent chakra to his ear and realized what they were discussing. Had they figured out the answer to the test? The _real_ answer?

"Okay!" Ibiki shouted after about 10 minutes, making Aki and Daiki flinch. Aki had managed to steal a few answers, and Daiki was copying them from the other boy's paper. Takeshi even got in on it after a while, copying down the answers. Takeshi didn't flinch because he knew it only made him look suspicious.

Ibiki didn't know how they figured out, but they worked well together. The blue haired boy must have told them; he seems like the smart one. That Kaneko clan brat must have been the one stealing the answers, he's heard of some of their superhuman hearing and sight. They probably had super human smell, but Ibiki didn't care. It didn't make them any less arrogant... And annoying. The purple haired one must have been the lookout, nudging the other boy to stop stealing the answers and he would nudge the blue haired one to stop copying... This is actually pretty splendid.

Iruka was grinding his teeth, though, but he kept a smile on his face. He _wanted_ them to fail. He _wanted_ them to not be killed, he was trying to save them! But... Not even he could persuade Ibiki to fail them... The Chunin saw the light in the Jonin's eye. They would end up passing...

Suddenly, a random Chunin examiner stood up and gave Iruka a sheet a paper. He knew this was all the people who failed - for reasons he didn't know - and nodded his thanks to the Chunin.

"Tadakuni-san, fail," he started gingerly, feeling the sting of guilt shoot up in him. This was better than feeling guilt for passing them and they end up dead. Then you have to apologize to the parents and if they're clan kids then... Oh, sheesh... "Marian-san, fail. Aya-san, fail. Arisu-san, fail," it seemed like he wouldn't ever stop failing. All of the crying girls and stomping boy's didn't help, either. After he was finished with the list, he looked up, cursing as he saw 6 kids left.

Yamanaka Daiki. Kaneko Aki. Hatake Takeshi. Sawada Tatiyana. Kano Hideyoshi. Inuzuka Hikaru.

He did _not_ think Daiki, Aki, Tatiyana, and Hikaru would pass. Not at all. He figured Takeshi and Hideyoshi, the geniuses of the class, to pass... But it can't be a 2 person team, especially during times of war. They would have to be put in the reserves, Takeshi being taught by his parents whenever he got the chance and Hideyoshi just having to probably wait until someone is able to teach him. That would be a happy ending... For Iruka, at least.

But now, this number of people is enough for two teams! And almost half of them aren't even from a Ninja family! How did _they_ pass?!

"Okay! There are six people left!" Ibiki boomed. "I will now give the last problem!"

_How should I feel about this? _Takeshi thought, making sure not to look distressed. They almost had enough problems done to pass. If they get this one right, then they would be able to pass!

"Yes, but before that, there's one thing I must say," the Jonin said. "There will be one special rule for this last problem. This is... A hopeless rule."

Everyone tilted their head when he said that. What's a hopeless rule? When can a rule be hopeless? That doesn't make much sense..

"First, you are all going to choose whether you want to take this tenth problem or not. If you choose not to take it, your points will be reduced to zero. In other words, you will fail."

Tatiyana's brearh hitched when she heard that. She was one of the lucky ones that was sitting right beside someone with all the answers, so she was practically done. She didn't have to take three tenth problem and still pass, but now...

"And here is the other rule," Ibiki began, smirking at Tatiyana's expression. He _loved_ that expression. "If you choose to take it and you get it wrong, you will..."

...

"**You will lose the privilege to become a Ninja, forever!**"

...

"I have a question!" Aki yelled, standing up and raising his hand. He was scared, now... But he wouldn't show that, not with an Inuzuka staring right at him. "What about the people who failed already?! Why do we have so much pressure put on us, nya?!"

"The question to both of those are simple," he grinned sadistically. "You were _unlucky_..."

Aki wanted to question more, he wanted to yell more, because he didn't understand that at _all_! But, the looks from Ibiki made him sit down. He was practically daring the boy to speak.

"This year, _I _am the rule. That's why _I_ gave you the option of quitting," he shrugged. "Those who are not confident can choose to take the exam next year, or the year after that," he chuckled at the kid's expressions. Personally, he would pass all of them for even making it this far, but he had to test them all the way. It was an order.

"Let us begin... Those who will not be taking the tenth question, raise your hand," he ordered nonchalantly, quietly praying they would notice his bluff.

Takeshi knew he was bluffing, because he doubted some random examiner could determine whether he could become a Ninja. Although, he wasn't too sure, so he was pretty much like the rest. He wouldn't put his hand up unless Daiki and Aki did first. The others wouldn't put their hands up unless two or more people did also, so no one put their hands up.

Ten minutes passed, and Iruka was going crazy. He knew Ibiki was about to pass them, so he had no other choice.

"You know, if you don't answer this last question correctly, you can never become a Ninja. Do you kids want that? To come so far only to fail?" Iruka asked, trying desperately to make them just quit before Ibiki passes them. Ibiki just looked at Iruka through the corner of his eye, frowning. He wouldn't intervene, he'd just see what would happen.

"The right choice, for your future, that is, is to quit. Ninja don't take unnecessary or risky actions, you should quit now before you just end up getting hurt," he was frowning on the outside but was smirking on the inside. He saw their now distressed faces, their minds probably battling with each other. One side wanted to quit and the other side wanted to pass, but it wasn't certain they would pass, so the first side was winning...

_I'm not quitting before Takeshi! _Aki thought, clenching his fist under the table. He didn't know how longer he could hold out on this, it was as if his body wanted to just get up and leave! "Not before Takeshi..." He thought out loud, accidentally. It was a whisper, so he doubted anyone heard.

He was wrong, Takeshi didn't hear what he said, but he heard his name. He thought he heard him name, he couldn't tell anymore. He knew he wouldn't be able to go home if he quit, not with his mom being sort of insane. And he knew he would never be able to show his face again if he quit, so just waiting would be the appropriate answer, is what he thought. Or, at least until Aki quits, because he knew the only one who would dare tease him is that _cretin_.

"I won't give up," Daiki mumbled, trembling all over. "I won't lose to this test... I'm gonna be a Ninja," he practically chanted, making Aki perk his ears up. After hearing Daiki say that, even if he didn't believe it himself, he found a little bit of strength... The will to keep going!

"I won't give up. I won't lose to this test... I'm gonna be a Ninja," Aki started, grinning at Daiki's surprised reaction. "I won't give up. I won't lose to this test... I'm gonna be a Ninja!" He didn't shout it out, but he said it loud enough for Takeshi to hear. "I won't give up. I won't lose to this test... I'm gonna be a Ninja!" Aki and Daiki chanted, still a little over a whisper.

Takeshi just smirked, not wanting to chant with them because it was stupid, but he did find the inspiration to keep on.

"...Good determination," Ibiki complimented, making Iruka curse out loud. He didn't care about the looks he got, he just stormed out the room, rushing to the Hokage's office. Everyone just stared at him blankly, before getting back to the test. "Anyway... For the Genin Selection Exam... Everyone here," he smiled. "Everyone here passes!"

...

...

"Eh?"

_~After The Now Six Genin Got Their Forehead Protectors~_

Ibiki explained to them the true meaning of the test and sent the kids off with happy smiles. He gave them all the necessary supplies and a forehead protector, since Iruka stormed out and wasn't able to. There were many cheers, mostly from Aki and Daiki, and plenty of laughter, also mostly from Aki and Daiki.

Aki, Daiki, and Takeshi were now all at the training grounds, since they were now officially ninja. Their parents weren't there to see if they made it or not, since they were mostly all busy people. So, Takeshi wanted to spar against Aki because of the stunt the latter pulled.

"Uh, are you sure about this?" Daiki asked Takeshi, who furiously nodded in response. "Ugh... That test was mentally tiring, you know? I'm sure both of you are in no condi-"

"Start the match, nya!" Aki demanded, cracking his knuckles. Today was the day he would show that the Kaneko's were the strongest in the village, second to the Hokage, of course. But, if he could beat a Hatake, a so called prodigy, then they'd have to admit he was strong!

"Begin," Daiki mumbled. He nonchalantly turned around, not even wanting to see the fight. He knew Takeshi would win, it was pretty obvious.

Aki charged at Takeshi. If the latter wasn't fast, he would have been kicked in the face, but he _was_ fast. He brought his head back to avoid the kick and grabbed Aki's leg, throwing the other boy on the ground.

"Wow," he grinned, as if he didn't just get thrown on the ground. "I might actually have fun," he jumped up, taking out his claws and slashing at Takeshi's face. The other boy jumped back, but was met with a kick to the stomach.

"Ah!" He gasped at how fast Aki moved right then, clutching his stomach. Aki didn't let Takeshi get any free time; he scratched the other one in the face. "Aaahh!" He clutched his face now, five bleeding red marks on his face. He jumped back, wanting to get as far away from the other as possible. "Can you even call what you do Taijutsu? You're annoying!"

"Hey, don't call the Kaneko clan's Taijutsu skills annoying, you bum, nya!" Aki yelled back, starting a set of hand seals. "I'll show you," he finished, inhaling a _lot_ of air. "**Kaneko Style: Acid Ball!**"

Takeshi didn't know any of the Kaneko clan's techniques, so he knew the logical thing to do would be to start the hand signs for the Substitution Jutsu. He was lucky to finish in time when a green ball of what looked like trash was coughed out of Aki's mouth. It flew straight at the boy, but as soon as it touched, Takeshi exploded in a puff of smoke. A log was in his place, but it was being melted by the ball of trash.

"Aw, come on," Aki whined, slipping out a kunai as he looked around. "Where are you~? Hello~? Hatake-sama~?" He kept looking around, but Takeshi was nowhere to be seen. Daiki just sat on the ground, blankly staring at Aki. He saw the small smirk on the blue haired boy's face, making him feel uneasy.

Suddenly, the ground under Aki started to crumble open, and a hand grabbed his leg! "W-Wha!" Aki was pulled into the ground, stopping when his chin painfully hit the ground. "H-Huh?! What's going on, nya?!" He yelled, trying desperately to get out. It was no use... He was stuck in the ground.

Takeshi jumped out of the ground in front of him, a smug grin on his face. "**Earth Style: Head Hunter Jutsu,**" he said. "You lose."

"Nya~! No fair, no fair!" Aki yelled, his head thrashing around randomly. "It's because your dad is Hatake Kakashi, _of course_ you'd have more Jutsu learned than me!" His shouting was ignored as Takeshi dusted himself off, turning around.

"Let's go, Daiki," Takeshi motioned for the other to follow, walking away.

"Oh, well," Daiki responded, giving Aki a sympathetic look before following his friend. "Hopefully you get out! Hasta la vista!" And with that they were gone.

Aki just blinked, the wind blowing his hair to the side as he gave a bored look.

...

"Damn it."

_**I'm sorry it's so long everyone! I just didn't feel like having two chapters for the exam. And you should remember Ibiki's Chunin Exam Test, so that's why I didn't explain that. It made it shorter, and I added that last mini fight just for a bit of action. There will be plenty more action, so don't leave just yet! Bye bii~!**_

_**Read And Review~!**_


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